Commanded on its first bombing raid
by Lieutenant Commander Franz Georg Eichler, the L 48 dropped his bombs
near Harwich shortly before dawn on June 17, 1917. Eichler then turned
for home. Believing that he was flying east, away from England and out
of danger, he brought the ship down to 13,000 feet. But the compass had
frozen and was giving a faulty reading. The L 48 actually was flying
north along the English coast - at an altitude well within range of the
British aircraft that soon closed in on it. The faint rattle of
machine-gun fire was heard and incendiary bullets tore into the gas
cells. Explosions followed as the gas cells caught fire. Within a few
minutes the Zeppelin smashed to earth. Only two of the 21-man crew
survived. The Zepp was shot down by Lieutenant L.P. Watkins.

(Source: The Giant Airships - Douglas Botting - Time Life Books 1980)

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L
48 - No. 3

L
48 - No. 7

L
48 - No. 8

L
48 - No. 11

L
48 - No. 16

L
48 - No. 14

Six cards from a large series
published by J.S. Waddell, Photographer, Leiston

Both as bomber and as strategic
scout, the Zeppelin was being replaced by the airplane. Scarce raw
materials such as rubber and aluminium, needed in airship construction,
were diverted to the production of planes for an expanding German Air
Force; the Navy's airship allotment was limited to 25, and new ships
could be build at the rate of only one every two months. Raids would
only be conducted on extremely dark, cloudy nights. Such a night came on
October 19, 1917. An 11-ship attack was launched that became known in
England as the "silent raid". As targets were chosen
the industrial centers in central England. As the airships made their
landfall they were surprised by a violent north wind that broke up
the attack and swept the ships helplessly southward across England at
speeds of 45 to 50 miles per hour. The L 49 was forced to land in France
by French fighter planes and its crew was taken prisoner.